Five offseason moves to create a championship Packers team
By Brady Busha
4. Want vs. need
Aaron Jones’ 2018 campaign was primed to be great, only to be delayed by a substance abuse policy violation which took place in October 2017.
After averaging 5.5 yards per carry while sharing touches with Jamaal Williams in his rookie campaign, the UTEP product was a draft steal in the making. Jones’ combination of agility, vision and power was something Green Bay fans haven’t seen since the days of Ahman Green.
Jones continued running strong in 2018 before suffering a knee injury in Week 15, leading to his injured reserve designation. Jones averaged 5.6 YPC through Week 14 to go with eight touchdowns. Those eight touchdowns were good for eighth in the NFL, tied with Nick Chubb, taken at 35th overall in the 2018 draft.
These numbers were accumulated with a two-game handicap, as well as a stretch of games that kept the ball out of Jones’ hands, which drew ire from Packers fans. Running back can finally be checked off the offseason shopping list.
Defensively, MLB Jake Ryan, CB Kevin King, and S Kentrell Brice all are approaching a fork in the road. Ryan will end this season on injured reserve, and possibly will depart for free agency this offseason with Brice.
In light of this, we may not see them play another down for Green Bay, but it’s worth noting that Ryan was a solid starter upon taking over alongside Blake Martinez, and Brice has showcased his ability as a poor man’s Lamarcus Joyner in the nickel spot.
Kevin King is the only player on defense that has simply been too injured to assess properly. Having only been able to play in 15 games in his first two seasons, exiting early on multiple occasions, he has shown great instincts and range in his career. King will end 2018 same way he finished 2017; on injured reserve.
King’s speed and athleticism conflict with his fragile nature, making 2019 his last chance to prove his selection at 33rd overall in Ted Thompson’s final draft as general manager was a great pick. With so many questions and injury concerns revolving around defense, depth is an area of need this offseason.
The tongue-tying rookie wideout tandem of Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Equanimeous St. Brown, drafted in the late rounds of 2018, have flashed great promise, just the same as Aaron Jones did in 2017.
This offense may end up depending on inexperienced and sometimes unreliable talent. However, they are competitive, physically gifted and talented young men, scratching off WR as a position of need.
Davante Adams has proven himself as a top-tier receiver in the past two years. However, with Cobb potentially going to free agency, Geronimo Allison still bonding with Rodgers, and Jake Kumerow only just recovering from an SC joint sprain to end 2018, the #2 and #3 WR spots on the Packers depth chart are still virtually wide open.
Kumerow and Allison also carry ERFA and RFA tags going into this offseason, respectively, giving the Packers an opportunity to measure new talent against old before making personnel decisions. Finalizing the rotation of the receiver group will be vital to make progress in settling Green Bay’s offensive scheme for the long run.
Employing the right offseason regimen and taking proper snaps as starting players in camp, these intelligent young wideouts will create ways to bring this offense back from the land of the dead.